[Updated with an English-subtitled trailer included below the break.]

Okey dokey. Got ourselves a new trailer for the biopic Ip Man from Hong Kong’s dynamic duo, Wilson Yip and Donnie Yen. Any and all footage continues to impress. The new trailer showed up online and you can find it embedded after the break, along with other trailers and clips. I having troubles grabbing it and loading it up on the Twitch Video Player. For now just enjoy. 

Yes, the punching to the floor is in it!

Continue Reading "New Trailer for biopic ‘Ip Man’! **UPDATE**"...

A teaser trailer for Imagi Studios’ Astro Boy, an upcoming CG animated film based on the classic manga series by the legendary Osamu Tezuka, has finally arrive online.  As mention before, the director is David Bowers (Flushed Away) and the voice cast include Nicolas Cage, Kristen Bell, Donald Sutherland, Nathan Lane, Bill Nighy, Eugene Levy, Matt Lucas and Freddie Highmore.  Heres the synopsis:

A thrilling tale of a true hero, ‘Astro Boy’ is an all-new, full-length feature film full of action, adventure, humor and heart. It will be brought to life on the big screen in breathtaking CGI animation on October 23, 2009.

Set in futuristic Metro City, ‘Astro Boy’ is about a young robot with incredible powers. Powered by pure positive “blue” energy, Astro Boy (Freddie Highmore) is endowed with super strength, x-ray vision, unbelievable speed and the ability to fly- not to mention the purest spirit on the planet.

Embarking on a journey across the planet to discover his powers, Astro Boy encounters a netherworld of robot gladiators and other comic characters, and learns the joys and emotions of being human. When he learns his friends and family are in danger, Astro Boy marshals all his awesome super powers and returns to Metro City, in a valiant effort to save everything he cares about and to embrace his place in the world.

Dang, I wanted to see more.  I guess its a little too early at this stage to show much since its nearly a year away till its release in theaters.  So what do you think?

Well, it appears as though all bets are well and truly off when it comes to film in Korea.  With the bubble now thoroughly burst the once-thriving Korean film industry is contracting rapidly and all the old rules are being thrown out the window. Case in point:  Korean horror films.  Once released nearly exclusively in the summer months - where horror has been hugely successful for years - this year saw just a single horror title released in the summer season, the surprise commercial hit Gosa.  And where Korean horror was once all about atmosphere and dread Gosa threw that approach out the window and instead functioned much more like a slasher picture, a trend that is growing rapidly in the region.

Enter 4 Day, a film that bucks Korean history by being both a horror film due for release out of season and one that - like Gosa - abandons the old ways of doing things in favor of large quantities of blood and violence.  Unlike Gosa, however, which was purely a lowest common denominator assault designed to put as many teenaged butts in seats as possible with few considerations paid to anything else, 4 Day looks to be aiming a little higher.  The cast is stocked with solid character actors, there are no pretty young things to be found, and the technical end of things looks far superior.  Typically strong Korean cinematography and tech work fused with a more westernized, higher energy approach to horror?  Yes, please.

Check the trailer in the Twitch Player below the break.

Continue Reading "Korea Gets Bloody On 4 DAY"...

Zowie.  Every now and then a film just kind of comes out of nowhere, featuring talent that nobody’s really heard of, and yet it is done with such a sense of style, such a clear vision of what they want to do that it’s almost impossible to believe that it’s a first project at all.  Some guys have to work to develop their world and style over time while for a rare few it just seems to emerge full grown and such is the case for James Boss and Whitewall.  Here’s the synopsis, as far as it goes:

Set in a wasteland enclosed by a large white wall, the last survivor from a brutal child internment camp reluctantly takes on one final bounty hunting job to protect the idyllic life he has rebuilt.

A post-apocalyptic sci fi action flick that looks to incorporate a large dose of martial arts this one impresses on all levels.  The cinematography is gorgeous, set designs convincing and from what you can see of action and cast they all certainly look their parts.  Hell, they’ve even got the good sense to use music from Godspeed, You Black Emperor spinoff Thee Silver Mt Zion.  The big test will be with a longer reel of footage when we can get a sense for the acting but this teaser is as strong as I’ve seen in a good while.  Check it out below the break.

Continue Reading "Hugely Impressive First Teaser For James Boss’ WHITEWALL"...

Well, it’s about time.  After releasing a three minute promo a year ago followed by a string of five teasers over the past month or so the first full trailer for Cem Yilmaz’s Turkish time traveling comedy AROG has just arrived.  A sequel / inversion to Yilmaz’s previous scifi hit GORA - a sort of Turkish Mel Brooks film with simply stellar production values - this one sends Yilmaz back in time to deal with cave men and dinosaurs and the early teasers - each of them self contained little scenes - were absolutely hysterical.  So it’s a little sad that this first proper trailer is the weakest by far of the promo materials released thus far, though blame for that should be placed squarely on whoever cut it together rather than the footage itself since the problems here seem to be all about presentation and not actual content.  Check ‘em all out in the Twitch Player below the break.

Continue Reading "Finally, A Full Trailer For Cem Yilmaz’s AROG"...

If people aren’t very careful this whole vampire craze is going to collapse under it’s own weight very soon and, honestly, I’m kind of puzzled as to how it happened in the first place.  With the finally subsiding zombie craze we at least had 28 Days Later as the obvious trigger point but there doesn’t seem to be any corresponding event in the vamp world, it’s like everybody simultaneously and independently transferred their need to make movies about the undead onto the other prime target and we’re now seeing the results.  Odd.

Anyway, Sodium Babies.  The first trailer for this indie French vamp action flick first appeared on the website of the producers last month but, due to vampire overload, I didn’t look at it at the time.  In fact, I didn’t bother to look at it at all until today when the trailer began to pop up on big commercial French movie websites to promote its upcoming release.  And, honestly, wile it shows its low budget roots a little bit it looks like solid, stylish stuff.  Check it in the Twitch Player below the break.

Continue Reading "First Trailer For French Vampire Flick SODIUM BABIES"...

How on earth did Sean Connery survive the Zardoz period of his career?  No particular reason for this post other than that I just found a nice, high res version of the trailer and it’s gloriously trashy 70’s pulp.  And it’s got breast, so definitely of the not safe for work variety.  Trailer’s below the break in the Twitch Player.

Continue Reading "Just Because We Can.  It’s The Trailer For ZARDOZ."...

I have a lot of faith in director Henry Selick and have a really hard time imagining a director better suited to adapting Neil Gaiman for the big screen but somehow I find myself a touch less enthusiastic about the brand new theatrical trailer for Selick’s adaptation of Neil Gaimian’s Coraline than I expected to be.  Is it the Dakota Fanning factor kicking in?  Or am I just tired and cranky?  Hit the link below and weigh in yourself ...

I’m still quite excited to see Scott Sanders’ loyal Blaxploitation spoof Black Dynamite.  I say still, because the first trailer looked like an over-the-top throwback to classic Blaxploitation fare, but this brand new trailer lets the cat out of the bag.  The creators are aiming for a classier version of I’m Gonna Git You Sucka or Undercover Brother (both fine spoofs in their own right).  Yum.  Yum.

This is the story of 1970’s action legend Black Dynamite. When “The Man” murders his brother, pumps heroin into local orphanages, and floods the ghetto with adulterated malt liquor, Black Dynamite is the one hero willing to fight all the way from the blood-soaked city streets to the hallowed halls of the Honky House.

R.I.P.  Rudy Ray Moore. You’ll find all the Dynamite goodness - including that of the NSFW variety - below the break in the Twitch Player.

Continue Reading "Parody Done Right: BLACK DYNAMITE (New Trailer)"...

A film like this sells itself, really.  Hot girls, big guns, gratuitous cleavage shots and the self proclaimed “Greatest Chick Fight In Cinema History”.  This is what makes up Rick Jacobson’s Bitch Slap, a film we’ve covered extensively in these pages, and a film that now features a brand new trailer.  The first trailer was purely an exercise in style, a chance to show off the look of the film - and its leading ladies - while this trailer runs longer and delves a little deeper into the actual storyline by including little things such as dialogue.  So strap in and get ready, both trailers are below the break in the Twitch Player.

Continue Reading "More Breasts. More Guns. More Slapping.  A Second Trailer For Rick Jacobson’s BITCH SLAP!"...

Anybody remember the last time people got excited for a Star Trek movie?  Neither do I, so well done JJ Abrams, you’ve brought a once proud franchise back from the brink.  But what have you done with it?  The first chance to see comes tonight with the trailer now online ... Alas, I’m behind a firewall that won’t let me actually see the stupid thing, so I’ll have to rely on you lot to tell me what I’m missing.

We’ve been tracking the progress of Cashback director Sean Ellis’ forway into the horror world for quite some time now and actually ran an early version of the French trailer for his latest effort, The Broken, a while back.  But that version of the trailer featured some unfinished post production work and so we subsequently removed it from the site and have since only been able to show the very different Japanese trailer.  Well, apparently the post is done, the official French website for the film has been launched and front and center is the now-official version of the trailer.

On a busy street in London, Gina thinks she sees herself drive past in her own car. Stunned by this strange event, Gina follows the mystery woman up to her apartment. From here, events take an eerie turn for the worse until Gina’s awareness slides from solid reality into a world that will haunt more than just her nightmares.

Find both trailers below the break in the Twitch Player.

Continue Reading "Once Again, The French Trailer For Sean Ellis’ THE BROKEN With Lena Headey"...

You know, we’ve been writing about Brian Cox-starring revenge thriller Red for so long now that I had just kind of assumed that we had run the trailer before now but no, a quick glance through the video archives says that’s not the case.  And so with the trailer circulating prior to the film’s Norwegian release I remedy that oversight now.

Set in small-town America, Red derives its title from a 14-year-old dog that is the sole companion of Avery (Brian Cox), an older gentleman who lives alone with his memories in a simple existence posing no threat to anyone. One day while he is fishing, three troublesome teens terrorize him and kill the only thing he has left to love in the world—his dog. He sets out on a quest for an apology, but the situation soon escalates into much more.

Why is a film with an almost entirely American cast - and a good one at that, Cox is joined by Tom Sizemore, Amanda Plummer, Robert Englund and the kid who plays Cal in The Riches - getting a theatrical release in Norway after coming and going quietly in North America?  Good question, that.  Red is a Norwegian co-production and though May‘s Lucky McKee was the original director - and is still credited as a co-director - he was replaced during production by Norway’s Trygve Allister Diesen for reasons that are not entirely clear.  North American rights are held by Magnolia, who put it out on DVD last month.

Check the trailer in the Twitch Player below the break.

Continue Reading "A Trailer For Brian Cox In RED"...

We’re not kind to Winnipeg in the rest of Canada, really we’re not.  Unless being referenced in some Guy Maddin film or another it mostly exists to the rest of the country - at least to us here in Toronto - as some imaginary place that we have no firm concept of beyond that it has blistering cold winters and utter mosquito madness.  If I were to be honest, since Winnipeg lost its NHL team it exists here only as the butt of various jokes.  Sad, but true.  But those in the know will tell you that Winnipeg has a thriving art and film scene and while most of the ‘pegs cinephiles seem to be of the serious sort there are the unruly children of Aston-6 lurking about in the background.

A collective of sorts that cranks out impressive, low budget trailers to movies that don’t actually exist, Astron-6 exists as a sort of loving ode to the mid 80’s VHS shlock era.  And a major force in the Astron world is Steven Kostanski, the effects man whose work is on display in most Astron films and who is now in production on a seventeen minute short titled Heart of Karl.

Meet Karl. He’s a monster. Now meet Karl’s brother Max. Max is not a monster.

While there’s no release date for this given just yet, there is a trailer and it’s a dandy.  You’ll find it below the break in the Twitch Player.

Continue Reading "Winnipeg: Home To Long Winters, Lots of Mosquitos and Steven Kostanski’s HEART OF KARL"...

[This post bumped back to the top of the page because a) Cory McAbee is a hugely underappreciated genius, b) this new project looks ten kinds of awesome and c) the trailer is now in the Twitch Player below the break.]

There are several fans around these parts of The Billy Nayer Show frontman Cory McAbee and his delightfully offbeat film projects.  His first feature film, The American Astronaut gets a fair bit of play in the Halfyard household, and has developed tidy cult following that should welcome what looks to be this quasi-sequel of sorts.  Judging by the stills found on the official site, Stingray Sam looks to be a serialized project that is shaping up to a full feature for Sundance 2009 (echoes of Guy Maddin‘s peep-show assembled feature, Cowards Bend the Knee).  There simply are not enough space-western-musicals out there - nice to see that the BNS is looking out for us.

A dangerous mission reunites Stingray Sam with his long lost accomplice, The Quasar Kid. Follow these two space-convicts as they earn their freedom in exchange for the rescue of a young girl who is being held captive by the genetically designed figurehead of a very wealthy planet. This musical space-western miniseries is designed for small screens and perfect for screens of all sizes.

We also anxiously await any movement on Werewolf Hunters of the Midwest (Let the stars align for this, please) and Stingray Sam looks like a very pleasant surprise until that happens.

Continue Reading "American Astronaut fans Looky Here, It’s the STINGRAY SAM Trailer!"...